McConnell’s Tricky Dance on Immigration

The Senate is expected to approve on Thursday or Friday a big immigration overhaul bill, an important move toward what could become the most sweeping change in the immigration system in a quarter of a century.

And it’s hard to avoid concluding that the reaction of Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) will be: Good riddance.

No senator has appeared as conflicted over the course of the debate as Sen. McConnell has. Nor has anyone so deftly avoided being pinned down on the contentious issue.

On the one hand, Sen. McConnell is one of the leaders of a Republican party in which many believe GOP support for a new immigration system is essential to rebuilding the party’s frayed relationship with Hispanic voters. On the other hand, many of the party’s conservatives remain dead set against the immigration overhaul that’s taken shape, and they’ve made clear they are capable of taking aim at Sen. McConnell over the issue when he seeks re-election next year.

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